And so, the heroes finally reach the heart of Sorshen’s Pleasure Dome. Following the tunnel with the river of blood to its end, they find themselves at the top of a sanguine waterfall, looking out over a humongous cave. Below them is a plateau, split in two by the continuing river of blood, which drops down another waterfall at the edge of the elevation to empty its contents in a lake. The waters have mostly turned red by now. To the left, the party stares down on a garden that has flourished in a wild natural state without being completely overgrown. But the right commands a more spectacular view. Rising proudly from the plateau is a magnificent temple of white marble, pristinely preserved. From her high perch Elvira gauges the whole cave to have a classic heart-like shape with the plateau occupying the two upper curves and the lake filling in the bottom half, gradually narrowing to a tip.
“It looks like we have arrived,” Balian grumbles under his breath, “if ever there was a time to summon Spyder to my side, it’s now … Yes,” he says while scratching his new war cat Vex behind the ears, “you are not my first animal friend. I used to have a dog before you, a loyal companion, but he died. He’s in heaven now, where he has become something more, a mix of animal and angel. He even has a new name, Esphydriel. I can call upon him once more to aid me here on earth. Today I will collect that favor.”
The ranger closes his eyes and fondly remembers the good times he had with his labrador retriever. “Spyder, my old friend, I ask your service once more.” As he opens his eyes again, Balian sees how a light starts glowing in the air next to him. It grows in size, taking a vaguely humanoid shape. Then the light softens and reveals a noble creature in shining armor, holding a greatsword. He has all the bearings of a paladin, but his head is canine. Although he looks unmistakably like Spyder, his eyes burn with a wisdom that the dog never displayed. “Hello, boss, good to see you again. Judging from the blood flowing at my feet, I guess you didn’t bring me here to walk in that park there. How can I be of assistance?”
“Just follow my lead, as in the old days”, Balian replies, trying but failing to hide the joy at seeing his old brother-in-arms again. “We’re tracking a top dog vampire,” he jokes, “there’s no sign of him, so he must be in that temple over there.”
The party descends and walks around the house of worship. The perfect white marble reflects the light that magically fills this cavern with such brightness that it almost seems aglow itself. The structure is designed with a mathematical strictness that instills a sense of awe, despite its elementary lay-out. The central building is surrounded by a monumental colonnade, the curve-necked columns easily standing 25 feet tall. But the most impressive feature is the pedimental triangle in the front, filled with beautiful sculptures of breathtaking women in the nude. This sanctuary is clearly devoted to beauty and lust. Heavy intricately carved bronze doors stand shut.
The heroes cast their final buffs, [i[death ward[/i], freedom of movement and haste. Then Sjo and Balian pull the doors open. Inside this temple is as basic as outside, white marble all around with one prominent feature that commands all attention, a brilliant golden statue of Sorshen, so large that the room is barely high enough to house it. In front of the colossus is an altar with a sleeping naked woman on top. A regal-looking creature in black robes, pale-faced and moving as if he is floating just above the ground, turns to face the party: “Finally, you have arrived. To be fair, I was expecting you sooner, the challenges that you had to overcome weren’t that formidable. Still, I probably shouldn’t hold you to the standards of heroes in my time.
I would like to thank you. After all, you allowed that old man to find me and wake me from my slumber. That certainly deserves my gratitude. But that simple act pales in comparison to another contribution you made to aid the mistress of lust rise anew. While you were making your way through this wonderful complex, you delivered the final ingredient required to wake the Runelord. The gift of even a few drops of blood, provided by those who walk the earth above, was enough to mix with the stream of the ocean giants’ lifeblood. Now the blood magic will finally be able to do its work and free Sorshen from her Runewell. All thanks to you.
But that also means that your task here is done. So now you face a new choice: submit to Sorshen’s absolute rule or say farewell to this mortal coil once and for all.”
“We prefer choice number three,” Puk throws back, “kill all of you and be done with it!” He rushes forward and plunges his luckblade in the vampire’s flank. Kusasfa hisses and raises his hands. He slaps Puk across the face, disappointed to find out that magic guards the halfling from being drained of his life force. His next few swings go wide. Balian joins the fray and draws more vampire blood with his forceblade. Sjo and Elvira stand back and enhance their companions’ abilities with blessing of fervor and greater heroism.
Puk is enjoying beating the crap out of this elusive Kusasfa figure, but when he gleans over his shoulder, he sees a giant fist of gold trying to squat him like a fly. He manages to roll below the hand, which – BAMM – slams into the wall, sending fragments of marble flying everywhere like rain, but then the rogue notices the golden statue’s foot come crashing down. DOUFFF! This time he cannot avoid the blow. His ribs crack under the force.
Kusasfa seems satisfied that the golden colossus can take care of the halfling and focuses his attacks on Balian. His claws smash and rip, drawing more blood, but again finding that he cannot drain his opponent’s energy.
“I’m sorry,” Sjo cries, “I warded my friends against being drained. Is that what you vampires need to regain your strength? Here, take some healing of mine instead!” Then he casts mass cure serious wounds, making his friends better, but scorching even more damage into Kusasfa’s flesh with his holy energy. Elvira’s spell, prismatic spray, finds no purchase on the vampire, though. At the same time, she sees how Puk gets stumped even deeper into the ground by the colossus. If it weren’t for his resilient nature, he would have died already, but now he can just scramble away. Covered by Vex, he can withdraw to Sjo’s side to be healed.
Balian finds that Kusasfa has trouble hitting him and makes fun of his ‘clumsiness’. The vampire growls angrily and lashes out at Elvira instead. “Let this be your final act of unkindness … time to die!” Balian pushes on, driving the vampire back with every swing of his blade. “I guess summoning my hound archon was more of a social call after all, than a strategic necessity”, he mocks, tearing through undead flesh, “but I shouldn’t be impolite to my guest, now should I? Spyder, finish it!”
Balian’s distraction allows Esphydriel to step into position. Drawing upon his divine might to smite his enemies, the angelic hound slams down on the vampire. The holy light makes Kusasfa wail in pain, then he turns to smoke. His black robes fall empty to the floor. Sorshen’s consort is defeated!
Wasting no time to gloat, Balian takes to the air and confronts the colossus. The behemoth packs a mean punch, but Elvira remembers reading about these constructs, although at the time she didn’t believe that anybody could ever have enough gold to actually build one. Well, if you’re as powerful as Sorshen was, you probably had. Like all constructs, these things are immune to magic, but there always is the odd spell that does affect them. In this statue’s case, it is disintegrate. She fires a sickly black ray at the lumbering golden woman, hitting her in the chest. Immediately the giant sculpture starts moving more slowly. This will definitely reduce its chances to harm her friends, Elvira thinks. But then the colossus opens its mouth and spews forth a storm of fire that washes over the party, making Elvira question her decision.
“I’ll draw its attention”, Balian shouts, buzzing in the statue’s face like an annoying fly. His forceblade cuts through the precious metal, laying bare the mechanisms underneath. Puk rushes back in and tries to hamstring the colossus, figuring that even a construct must be vulnerable in the legs, especially if it has to bear the weight of gold. The golden giant stumbles against the back wall as Balian slices into her chest, pushing his blade up, through her neck and chin, cleaving her face in two. With a loud bang she smashes to the floor.
Sjo immediately sets to mending all injuries with his wands, while Elvira walks up to the naked woman on the altar. She looks absolutely gorgeous, with lush black hair. There can be no mistake, she is the spitting image of every depiction of Sorshen Elvira has ever seen. Still, there is something strange about her. Examining the unconscious body, Elvira concludes that it is in some kind of hibernation, but there is more to it than that. Despite its physical perfection it feels ‘fake’. This is not the real Sorshen, but a clone, much like the blood clones that Ileosa used to make, but better. Under the altar Puk discovers some scrolls, obviously divine in nature. He hands them to Sjo, who is pleasantly surprised to find they contain one mass heal and three normal heal spells.
Suddenly a humming whoooom comes from outside. Running to the doors, the heroes see that the lake has completely turned red. A bright white light shines from below the surface in the middle of the pool. Then a beam of energy shoots up, its brightness hurting the eyes of the onlookers. Squinting, Elvira makes out a shape in the light, outlining female perfection. “Kusasfa was right,” the enchantress mutters, “we are too late. Our blood woke her from her icy slumber and now the paragon of lust and love opens up her eyes! Behold how the Runelord rises!”
As suddenly as it started, the light dies out again and ‘zap’, an unequaled specimen of the female sex appears on the steps of the temple, clothed in a dazzling crimson gown of the finest silks. Despite the fact that she has just risen from a pool of blood, her skin is completely dry and clean, gleaming in a warm olive complexion. She is extremely beautiful, black curls cascade along the side of her neck and down her back, her eyes ablaze with an emerald haze. Imbedded in the skin of her left shoulder are eight green gems. This is Sorshen returned.. Just gazing upon her causes the heroes to gasp for air. When she opens her mouth, a beguiling voice comes out, sounding like three voices in one.
“As you might know, we, the Runelords, wielded powerful magic based on sin: greed provoked Karzoug, wrath sparked Alaznist, sloth drove Krune, pride inspired Xanderghul, gluttony imbued Zutha, envy triggered Belimarius and I, Sorshen, was spurred on by lust. But it wasn’t always so, once our power came from one of the seven virtues of rule: generosity, kindness, zeal, humility, temperance, charity and, my personal favorite, love. But, over the course of centuries, these virtues became corrupted, buried in sin and forgotten, albeit not completely erased.
Ten thousand years ago, at the height of our power, we were forced to flee from a disaster that threatened to annihilate us all: Earthfall, a swarm of meteors that impacted Golarion and destroyed the world as we knew it. We took shelter in our runewells, sinking into a millennia-long slumber, much longer than any of us had anticipated or hoped, because, somehow, the mechanism to bring us back had faltered.
That is, until five years ago, when Karzoug, the Runelord of greed, emerged from slumber and tried to reclaim the realm that was once his. But he failed to acknowledge that times had changed and he was finally defeated by a group of heroes. Still, his re-emergence into this world set off a chain reaction that flared other runewells like mine to life, with enough power to make me stir in my sleep, but not sufficiently powerful to bring me back to this world. I was, however, able to send out a sliver of my mind, to explore the new world that had arisen since my demise. My consciousness found purchase in a brilliant young scholar in the Acadamae. Yes, I am talking about you, Lady Elvira Campert. I rode along on your thoughts like a fly on the wall, watching and learning. My presence infused you with extraordinary powers, making you more brilliant than your peers and, let’s be honest, much more appealing as well.
After our merger, I don’t believe you ever had any trouble mastering even the most complicated enchantments, thus freeing up your time to pursue other interests. I was initially surprised that these interests did not include carnal desires, but rather a hunger for knowledge, which led you to work in the library and read up on every possible subject, allowing me to learn more about the current state of the world.
Floating on the edge of your mind did more for me than just grant me knowledge, it also allowed me to experience life from a different perspective, one not focused on the things that controlled my thoughts during the last few centuries of my rule: lust and power. Instead, you made me feel what it was like to live like a normal person, something I had forgotten. Through you I relived my own youth, before I became a Runelord of Sin, even before I became a Ruler of Virtue. You rekindled something in my soul. I was inspired by your selfless need to help others and do good, learning and remembering that kindness carried its own reward. And so I reconnected with the more virtuous side of my personality, finding a renewed appreciation for purity and love.
When Ileosa recently reactivated the Everdawn Pool, she fueled more power to my Runewell, allowing me to exercise just a little more influence over you, Elvira. After six years of bookish learning and sheltered virtue, I decided to try out what your values would be worth in the real world. Understanding that Ileosa had to be stopped, I steered you on the path of these heroes and watched what happened as events unfolded. I was not disappointed, finding that your good heart weathered the storm and came out on top, much to the delight of my virtuous side.
Now, the last step in my rebirth is complete: my one-time consort Kusasfa was finally able to restore me to life, as he was meant to do so many centuries ago. Still, I do not blame him for the delay, because I emerge renewed. As I stand before you now, I do so in all aspects of my being: I am Sorshen, Runelord of Lust, the sinful ruler who went to sleep here, I am also Sorshen, the Paragon of Love, my virtue restored. And of course, I am Sorshen in transition between the two, caught between good and evil.
Yet, for the safety of this world and the well-being of all its creatures, I cannot be allowed to be a split personality, and thus I require your aid. So, Elvira, the final decision is yours. You will choose which Sorshen arises, the good one, the bad or the one in between? Do whatever your heart tells you to, but to aid you in your dilemma, I will give you a hint to discover my true identity. Just know that, when we no longer speak as a trinity, but as single entities, my virtuous self always speaks true, my sinful side always lies and the Sorshen in transition might do either.”
At that moment Sorshen splits apart in three identical copies. They all speak at the same time:
“You can ask who one of us is, and all three of us will answer your question. Who do you want to know about?”
Taking in the stream of information, Elvira stops to ponder her options. She intensely studies all three women’s faces, but finds no clue whatsoever to their true nature. “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter who I ask about, so I want to know who you are”, she says to the middle Sorshen.
The left Sorshen is the first to answer: “She is the virtuous one.”
Next the one in the middle speaks. “I am the one in transition”, she claims.
Finally, the woman on the right says: “She is the sinful one.”
So, let’s try to figure this out, Elvira muses. The Sorshen in the middle cannot be the good one, because then she would have said so. So one of the others is the virtuous version, but it can’t have been the one on the left, because then she would have lied. That makes the right Sorshen the good one, and since she never lies, the one in the middle is the evil one. That leaves the neutral copy on the left.
Elvira walks up to the beauty on the right and kneels in front of her: “You are the Runelord I choose.” The woman simply nods and smiles. “You have chosen wisely. Now finish what you started.” Then she steps back and closes her eyes.
The Sorshen in the middle reacts differently to Elvira’s choice. As soon as the enchantress kneels before her good sister, the sinful one’s face contorts in an evil smirk. “You ignorant girl, do you really think that the most powerful ruler ever to walk these lands will just turn over and go away because you say so?” An orange bead appears in her right hand; with a soft blow of her mouth she sends it off to the party. It exploded in a fierce fireball that is so powerful that even Sjo gets seriously scorched, despite his fire resistance. The whole party now looks like burned toast, forcing Sjo to grab his new scroll of mass heal and restore everyone to full health.
As they rush in to attack, Puk and Balian are filled with awe for Sorshen’s beguiling beauty. Balian is wise enough to see past this perfect exterior and judge the woman by her nature, but Puk questions whether he should even hit someone so beautiful, missing his attacks. When she turns to him and stares deeply into his eyes, things get worse, as he is overtaken with butterflies that make him sick in the stomach.
Sorshen is wielding a big guisarme, adorned with blades at either end. A strange choice of weapon for a magic-user, it seems, until she throws it into the air and it starts attacking on its own. She also casts a quickened spell that brings forth a magic shield to bolster her defenses even more. Then she summons a cage made of pure force to try and capture Balian, but the ranger calls upon his heroic luck to jump out of the way in the nick of time.
Elvira realizes that Sorshen’s defenses make her almost invulnerable to the attacks of Puk and Balian, and decides to take down the shield. She cast greater dispel magic, seeing with her permanent detect magic that she has taken down another potent spell as well. Puk is still in doubt whether he should mar Sorshen’s beauty, and when she gives Esphydriel an alluring look, he gets jealous and strikes at the hound archon instead. Balian has no such qualms and is not misguided by the woman’s charm. His attacks now deal some serious damage, but it looks like the Runelord can take a severe punishment. She even risks more wounds by flying off to cast at the party from a distance. She also redirects her guisarme to strike at Esphydriel, while summoning a hand of pure magic that grapples and crushes Balian. With another quickened fireball she hurts the heroes even more.
Now it is Balian’s time to smirk. Having cast freedom of movement on himself earlier, he now slips free from the crushing hand and charges at the Runelord. Instead of striking her with his sword, he deactivates the forceblade, giving him the use of his arms to grapple his enemy. He pulls her down to the ground. As he pushes her body down, Sorshen stares into the ranger’s eyes, making him pine for her so hard that it hurts. Still, he hangs onto her, giving all his allies the chance to close in and stab at her. This time everyone hits home.
The Runelord of Lust needs to get out of this predicament quickly. As she is struggling with Balian, she starts rocking him rhythmically, irresistibly forcing him to dance. She slips out and takes to the air, sending her guisarme at the ranger and blasting a quickened lightning bolt at the heroes. She also throws a sultry look at the dancing ranger, making his companions sick with jealousy, so they hit him instead. Sjo heals some damage on everyone, but worries that without Balian the fight is lost. Sorshen is up in the air and Puk, Vex nor Esphydriel can fly. Balian’s dance will keep him out of the fight for too long. That only leaves Sjo and Elvira, but neither of them has an effective way to harm the Runelord and their spell stock is wearing thin. Elvira uses the ring of lover’s lightning to convert one of the last spells in her arsenal into a chain lightning bolt, but she fails to get through Sorshen’s spell resistance.
Things look desperate and desperate times ask for desperate measures. Puk holds up his luck blade and closes his eyes. “I wish that Balian stops dancing”, he whispers. A second gem in the hilt turns dull as the magic activates, dispelling Balian’s dance moves. The ranger shoots up, calling his forceblade to reappear as he swings at Sorshen, cutting deeply into her flesh. The Runelord’s face turns to panic, as she realizes that her contingency spell does not work anymore. Elvira knows that it is now or never. Using her ring again, she flings another chain lightning at her opponent. The electricity tears through Sorshen’s body. She spasms, screams, then her head sinks to he chest and she plummets from the air, dead.
The heroes take a few seconds to recuperate. Then Sjo resumes healing everyone, while Elvira wonders why the other two Sorshens did not interfere in the fight. She realizes that they will remain quite passive until her choice for the good Sorshen is reinforced by making the other two disappear. Evil Sorshen already lies defeated, but the neutral one is still here. Elvira huddles up with her friends and whispers to them that they have to take out the neutral Runelord as well. Balian nods, walks around the neutral version and, standing in her back, hilt in hand, he summons his force blade. The appearing sword pierces the woman through the heart. She sinks to the ground as well. Now only the good Sorshen is left.
She smiles at the companions: “Noble heroes, I thank you for making the right call and doing what is necessary. My sisters are no more, now only my virtue remains.” She walks up to the other two Runelord corpses.
“There is just one more thing my counterparts can give you in return for your bravery, before their magic fades”, she says. She bows down a bathes her hands in the blood of her defeated sisters. Then she turns to the heroes, drawing her rune on their left and right temple. “To carry out the sin of lust, my evil counterpart required stamina, which I now grant to you. My neutral twin was more affectionate, so she will bless you with her grace. From now on you will carry a bit more of both qualities in you.”
When this is done, she bows her head in gratitude:
“For ten thousand years I’ve been asleep. From what I’ve gleaned from Elvira, the world has changed almost beyond recognition. Most of what was once my realm, Eurythnia, has sunk beneath the waves. Thassilon is no more than a series of meaningless monuments, an ancient civilization whose excesses have fortunately been erased as well.
Seeing life through your eyes, Elvira, living and breathing the world in its pure form, has allowed me to be reborn as I once was before I succumbed to sin. But my journey is not over yet. If I truly want to know this new world, I will have to experience it from the bottom up and truly be reborn. And so I will.”
Then she turns to Sjo and says: “I hope you will be a good father.” Then she dissipates. Simultaneously the other Sorshens disappear as well, while their equipment merges back to one: one scintillating dress, one guisarme and eight emerald ioun stones.
Sjo frowns, trying to process what Sorshen just said. He … her father? Did she mean the baby? Is she going to reincarnate in his unborn child? It seems so. That promises to be interesting. Now all he has to do is think of a good way to tell Larella. Hey, darling, if we have a daughter, how about naming her Sorshen?
The heroes take some time to recover from their last ordeal. It looks like, for the first time in many months, Korvosa has returned to its former, stable self. The companions enlist the dwarves of Janderhoff to convert the remains of the gold colossus in Sorshen’s temple to cash. After making a generous donation to the city’s coffers, they invest the rest of their earnings to upgrade their equipment. Since they now live in the castle, they even sell their villa in Southshore, to the new high inquisitor of Asmodeus, Urdo Chartagnion, who has also become Cheliax’s de facto ambassador in Korvosa.
Sjo tells his wife what transpired under the mastaba, explaining that the virtuous essence of Sorshen has somehow merged with their unborn baby. Then he sets to ruling his kingdom, finding that being a monarch is mostly tedious work, red tape and bureaucracy. Still, he wants to try and be a good leader and use his position to do some good. One of his first decisions is to organize a weekly breakfast for a handful of random citizens, focusing on the weak and sick, and serving them a heroes’ feast to cure their diseases. He also appoints a new Shoanti ambassador, Saamesh, the young man the party saved from the orcs in Urgir, who is also the son of the most powerful jothka in all the tribes, Valkur Burns-in-his-Veins.
Puk has a first mission for his secret service: tracking down the two vampires who escaped from the castle. They manage to locate the kitchen maid Mikki, who has trouble controlling her urges and leaves a trail that makes her easy to find. There is no sign of Thousand Bones, however. The Shoanti shaman has either left the city or gone into hiding.
Balian takes charge of rebuilding the military, turning Citadel Vraid into a new training center. Several Shoanti wish to join as well, preferring the Sable Company, with less tribesmen interested in becoming members of the Korvosan Watch, unless they are guaranteed to be posted at an outpost in the hinterland, rather than in the city. He also forms a new special unit within the Sable Company, a palace guard.
Elvira becomes close friends with queen Larella, happily accepting her offer to become godmother when the baby arrives. She also continues her research into destroying the Crown of Fangs, working with the Dean of Divination, Norva Allesain, on a grand-scale divining ritual. For this séance, she gathers all powerful magic-users she trusts who can cast divination spells: Dean Norva Allesain, Darb Tuttle of Abadar, Ezekiel Sollux of Sarenrae, Keppira d’Bear of Pharasma, Arunan Lives-Of-Fire, the Sun shaman of the Sklar-Quah and, obviously Elvira herself and Sjo. She also asks Puk, Balian and Cressida Kroft to contribute, since they all played such an important part in the struggle against the evil crown-bearing queen. She places the artefact on a pedestal in the middle of the throne room and leads the gathering through the lengthy procedure.
The ritual is a success. With her eyes closed, Elvira suddenly sees an angel appear in front of her, wings burning. She suspects this divine creature to be a herald of Shelyn, the goddess of love and beauty, who once was the loving twin sister of Zon-Kuthon, before he fell to evil and misery. Through Elvira’s mouth, the angel recites the following words:
The fangs of Kazavon
Will utterly be gone
When struck by virtue and
Some greater evil’s hand
To see this burden done
You’ll need the aid of one
Whose sheer kindheartedness
Survived his foul disease
Already he withstood
That which he shouldn’t
Have and now he’ll rise and go
To deal the final blow
But first the tool of death
Must soften in the breath
Of one whose evil soul
Is just as black a hole
Or better, blacker yet
An even greater threat
To terminate his ire
You must fight fire with fire
Interpreting the text, Elvira and her guests figure that destroying the Fangs of Midnight requires both extreme good and extreme evil.
The good must be someone who is still virtuous and kindhearted, but who fell victim to Kazavon’s foul disease. Since Kazavon was manipulating Ileosa at the time of the plague, that disease should definitely qualify. An innocent person who got very sick, but survived the terrible scourge, is Brienna Soldado, the young girl from Trail's End who Sjo saved. Her mother, Tayce, now works in the Castle and her girl is often there as well. Elvira has even been helping her learning to read and write. She seems to fit the description perfectly.
The big, bad evil has to be a creature who is at least as powerful and black-hearted as Kazavon was, who will have to breathe over the Fangs with his fiery breath. Clearly this means another dragon, but one of the greatest power imaginable: a great wyrm!
So, first the dragon will have to use its breath weapon on the Fangs, and then the child will have to smash them. But how do you find such a dragon, and how do you get it to comply? Moreover, taking a vulnerable child to face one of the greatest threats in the world is nothing short of suicide. Fortunately, Balian offers a solution for the latter, the pocket dimension in his Bracer of Pet Preserve could easily house one creature safely, it doesn’t have to be his pet, it could just as well be a human. The dimension might be an isolated place for the child to hide in, but the green valley inside is certainly an agreeable environment.
This leaves the matter of the dragon. Research teaches Elvira that at least one such beast lives within reachable distance, in the Five Kings Mountains, a mountain range located somewhere between Korvosa and Taldor. The terror goes by the name of Daralathyxl, a great red wyrm. Since the Five Kings Mountains are dwarven territory, Sjo suggest visiting Janderhoff first, to learn more about their destination.
In the dwarven citadel of Janderhoff, the party meets up with Ragnar Ironfist, the clan lord. He tells them that the Five Kings Mountains are the largest center of dwarven culture on Golarion. Its largest city, the Sky citadel of Highhelm, is located under the lofty Emperor’s Peak. Once the range consisted of five nations, each ruled by one of five brothers, who quickly fell to infighting, resulting in a 700-year long civil war. When they finally struck a treaty, a new threat presented itself: their ancient enemies, the orcs, invaded. One by one the kingdoms collapsed, until only the Sky citadel of Highhelm remained. This ended the Era of the Five Kings, who now only live on in the range’s name.
Nowadays, there are six loosely-affiliated dwarven cities in the region, each acting as independent city-states with their own government and traditions. There is no central authority, but Highhelm is considered the de jure capital. High King Borogrim the Hale convenes a meeting of the Gathering Council, composed of the rulers of each of the six cities, once every 200 years. These councils are known to go on for months.
If the party needs a place to begin their search for the infamous dragon, Highhelm seems like the perfect place to start. Clan lord Ironfist from Janderhoff writes a letter of recommendation for the heroes to facilitate their introduction to High King Borogrim the Hale.
2 Pharast 4709 AR
With a gift of three barrels of beer in the bag of holding the companions teleport to the gates of Highhelm in the Five Kings Mountains. Massive iron gates decorated with a huge dwarf face carved above the entrance, guard the way into the Sky Citadel.
A female guard, Akmara, greets the party at the gates. Elvira announces King Shaoban Onemaker of Korvosa and asks for an audience with the High King. Akmara leads the visitors into the underground city to a private guesthouse. Sjo hands her the letter from Janderhoff’s clan lord Ragnar Ironfist and reaffirms his request to speak to Borogrim the Hale. Akmara leaves for a couple of hours. When she returns, she confirms that the king will see them in five days. The companions thank her and return to Korvosa for now, after all, their home is ‘just a teleport away’.
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The next morning Sjo talks to Tayce Soldado. He explains that the prophecy on how to destroy the Fangs of Midnight calls for an innocent soul who survived the recent plague. Her daughter Brienna fits these criteria perfectly, so Korvosa will need the girl’s aid. When Sjo reveals the rest of the prophecy – the part about the gigantic evil dragon – Tayce is shocked and reluctant to allow her daughter to participate in such a dangerous undertaking. Sjo assures her that he and his friends have various means to maximize the girl’s safety: they can either hide her in Balian’s extra-dimensional bracer or they can have her stand at the ready at a predetermined location in Korvosa, so they can teleport to her side when her aid is required, which is after the dragon has breathed on the crown. Tayce clearly favors the latter solution.
The party also ponders on how to proceed with the dragon. Elvira sees three possible strategies: force the dragon, bribe or trick him. Forcing him means defeating him to an inch of death and then demanding that he does their bidding. A powerful enchantment spell might do the same, but getting such a spell to take hold on such a legendary creature will be very hard. Bribing him involves paying him whatever he wants to buy his cooperation, which will be hard as well. Even if it works, the creature’s price will be exuberant, and, won’t he just want the fangs themselves? Tricking him might be the most viable option: storm in and provoke the dragon to use his breath weapon on the person carrying the crown, then teleport away. With this option in mind, Elvira already has some sort of bird cage made to hold the crown, so someone can carry the evil artefact without having to touch it.
7 Pharast 4709 AR
At ten o’clock in the morning the High King of the dwarves welcomes the petitioners in his impressive throne room. Borogrim the Hale is old, but his eyes still burn with alertness. He seems only mildly entertained with the Korvosan beer Sjo offers him as a gift and asks the companions why they have come calling.
Elvira does not beat around the bush and tells him they are looking for Daralathyxl. When Borogrim takes them for ‘ordinary’ adventurers who think it might be ‘fun’ to hunt a dragon and steal his treasure, she explains the true purpose of their request. They need the dragon to breathe on an evil artefact to destroy it. The High King is sceptic, he has heard tales about how hard it is to get rid of artefacts, but he sincerely doubts the dragon will cooperate. Elvira reveals the three strategies they devised, favoring the one in which the companions trick the dragon to breathe on them – including the artefact – and simply teleport away. Borogrim says that might work, but to accomplish that, they will have to wake the dragon from his slumber and invoke his ire. Obviously, such a god among dragons does not appreciate invaders in his lair, and will surely look for revenge. If the heroes return to Korvosa, they might be safe from the dragon’s wrath, but the dwarves in the Five Kings Mountains won’t be. The beast has been inactive for a decade now, and the dwarves want to keep it that way for as long as possible.
Of course, the king understands that his visitors can just go and try to find the dragon on their own. So, negotiating with them is the better option. He can tell from their equipment and list of accomplishments that they are powerful. He also puts a lot of faith in Ironfist’s word that the party members are honorable. If Janderhoff’s clan lord trusts them, so does he. Of course, if the companions want to dwarves’ help in confronting Daralathyxl, they will have to agree to Borogrim’s terms.
Firstly, he requires guarantees that Korvosa will provide compensation, should the party’s actions provoke the dragon into attacking the dwarves or any of their human neighbors. Secondly, he claims the dragon’s hoard, should the party defeat the beast. Daralathyxl has stolen an incredible amount of wealth from the inhabitants of the Five Kings Mountains and the countries of Isger, Druma and Andoran. This treasure should obviously be returned to them. The High King also mentions one item of particular import to his people, the Axe of Dwarvish Lords. Thirdly, he wants to send one of his own men along, a ranger specialized in dragon hunting, Sigurd Dragondoom.
Sjo promises to return with an answer in 48 hours. He wants to consult with the small council in Korvosa first, before giving assurances with his people’s money.
9 Pharast 4709 AR
The party returns to Highhelm after two days. Sjo has reached a deal with his small council in Korvosa. The members have agreed to compensate the dwarves for possible damages caused by the actions of Sjo and his friends for up to half a million gold sails. In return Sjo has to accept that he and his entourage will pay a higher tax rate on what the earn from now on outside of their office, twenty percent instead of ten, something that really bothers Balian. Glorio Arkona also wants to be made special envoy in case of indemnity. And Larella, who would become regent if Sjo were to die until their unborn child reaches maturity, would need to consult with the council on all matters of importance during her rule.
High King Borogrim accepts the insurance and introduces the heroes to his dragonslaying champion, Sigurd Dragondoom. The dwarf who steps forward does not look like a legendary warrior, but more like a bored drifter. He sighs heavily and rolls his eyes when he meets the visitors, quite unimpressed with their titles and big promises of hefty compensation. He frowns upon Sjo’s revelation that he was ‘elected’ king, and suggests moving to a place that serves drinks to have a decent conversation. Surprisingly, he proposes a place far away, the Silver Bulette in the Andoran town of Olfden on the eastern border of the Arthfell Forest, th the South of the Five King Mountains. When it looks like he wants to make the long way over there on foot, Elvira offers to teleport everyone, which Sigurd accepts if she promises to make it a ‘slow’ teleport.
The Silver Bulette is a large inn with an expansive tavern on the ground floor. Since it is still quite early in the day, there are only a handful of patrons inside, who are overjoyed to hear Sigurd shout that drinks are ‘on the king’, pointing to Sjo. As the dwarf down his first tankard of ale, Puk asks him when one ‘becomes a dragonslayer’. How many dragons do you have to slay?
“That’s easy,” Sigurd snorts, wiping the froth from his moustache, “when people refer to you as a dragonslayer. But for now, I’m more interested in you, who are you and what can you do?”
Elvira is the first to answer, explaining that she is a former librarian and an accomplished enchantress. To her surprise, Sigurd is more interested in her bookish background than her magical powers. He finds the concept of making others do what you want quite normal for alluring women like Elvira, even if she is exceptionally skinny. But having access to rare books might actually come in handy, he claims.
Puk says he is Korvosa’s best drummer and quite skilled at stabbing enemies in vulnerable places. Sjo introduces himself as Shaoban Onemaker, a man of mixed blood, who managed to unite both people he originated from, after they had been at each other’s throats for three centuries. He is also good at healing. Balian summons his force blade and war cat, and explains that he is also good at making people do what he wants, which is bleed and die.
Next, Puk returns the question and asks Sigurd about his skills. The dwarf says he shoots a bow, which is usually a sound tactic when fighting dragons, because you don’t want those beasts to come close and unleash hell on you. Also, when the monsters are in flight, standing on the ground with an axe in your hands is somewhat ineffective.
“Still, I’m curious”, he continues, “why do you want to go and face this particularly powerful dragon? Seems very ambitious for people who come from a backwater town in a far-away land?”
Elvira explains the goal of the mission. “We have to destroy an evil artefact, forged from the teeth of the ancient evil wyrm Kazavon. To accomplish that, we need to bathe the object in the breath weapon of a dragon who is at least as vile and powerful as Kazavon was, and it looks like the only one in our hemisphere who fits the bill is Daralathyxl …”
Sigurd jumps up and spits: “Do not speak that name in my presence! I curse the evil red one’s name! But yes, I have heard of this great blue menace, Kazavon, who subjugated orcs and humans and committed unspeakable horrors. He was powerful indeed. There are few who surpass him.
But, do you have any idea of what you’ll be facing? What do you know about these creatures? I mean, take everything you know about dragons, and I do mean like the worst of the worst you can imagine. Got the picture? Well, now multiply that by ten and maybe, maybe you’ll grasp the challenge ahead.
So, having heard of your exploits, I do believe you have some skill, so you might be able to confront the red dragon … with, let’s say, twenty years of dedicated training, perhaps?”
“Twenty years? We were more thinking along the lines of … this week? After all, I have a kingdom to rule … and a baby on the way”, Sjo protests.
“Why do you humans always have to be so damn impatient? I know you don’t live that long, but you are not ready! What’s twenty years? Even you live longer than that, and from the look of it, you’re barely out of your diapers. You require training and then, maybe in twenty years you’ll be ready, perhaps fifteen if you’re extremely focused. After all, how many dragons have you slain?”
“Well,” Sjo muses, “Ileosa, the evil queen we defeated, had three dragons serving her.
“Sounds promising, go on …”
“We fought her blue dragon once, although we didn’t finish the fight. We also faced off against the red one, but it fled the scene, and we did actually kill the black one, didn’t we?”
“How big was it and how did you slay it?”
“It was … huge?” Elvira thinks out loud. “And, what happened again … oh yeah, I dominated its rider, who finished it off.”
Sigurd rolls his eyes again. “A dragon with a rider? What kind of weak-willed creature was that? Nothing compared to what you’re up against now. Any others?”
“We killed another black dragon in the swamps, when we were younger, but it was smaller”, Balian claims.
“Yes, and Ileosa also had this dragon made of blood when we confronted her, although, technically, that wasn’t a real dragon”, Puk tries.
“And in the Harrow Realm, we faced a very big blue dragon”, Sjo remembers. “That was a tough fight.”
“And this one didn’t have a rider?” Sigurd mocks.
“No, but … it was kind of a patchwork dragon, made of … wax.”
‘Torag’s beard! Even twenty years of training might not do! Unless you know of any other parties of adventurers that at least match your strength!”
“Well, Keppira is quite powerful,” Elvira ponders, “but not really the adventuring type, and the others in Korvosa are starting to lag behind, I’m afraid.”
“The Shoanti have some capable warriors,” Sjo interjects, “like Krojun, or my mum.”
“Your mother, really … I don’t think so.” Balian disagrees.
Sigurd sighs: “Unless you know a decent-sized group to join us, it won’t matter anyway. Without the proper training and preparation, we’ll be sorely outmatched as we are now. Although, there might be another option, one I dread to even consider, but circumstances being what they are …”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, there is another dragon in the region who might be swayed to join our cause.”
“Why didn’t you say that to begin with? You mean, like a gold dragon, or a silver?” Elvira beams.
“Nope.”
“Copper; then? Or bronze … brass?”
Sigurd shakes his head. “Hmm, not exactly.”
“What other types of metallic dragons are there, then?”
“I didn’t say a metallic dragon.”
“Huh? So, what is it, then?”
“She’s a green one.”
“But green dragons are evil!”
“Well, there’s evil, and then there’s evil. So, this dragon is … green and she’ll bite your head off without hesitation if you cross her, so some might call that evil, I guess. But she’s not driven by violence, not like others of her kind. She actually prefers people like you”, Sigurd nods at Elvira.
“Me? I’m no dragon snack! Dragons like virgins and I’m not …”
“I’m not interested in your sex life, nor is this green dragon. But she is obsessed with knowledge, like books and stuff … your cup of tea, right? On occasion, she even hires adventurers to explore forgotten ruins and uncover some ancient mystery or tome.”
“And how would she be able to aid us?”
“Well, as it stands, she is one of the few to have fought the one who shall not be named and survive the encounter. On several occasions even! She might not be as big and strong as him, and definitely not as evil, but she must either be very quick, very lucky, or very clever. She’d make a valuable addition to our team, even if she brings along her own set of risks.”
“And to gain her cooperation, we’d have to give her a book? We might have a thing or two that could interest her. The Leroung library is quite extensive, and there are some pretty special books in Domina’s Tower as well.”
“Yup, that’s why I said that you being a bookworm was a good thing. Now, there is another matter I want to address before we push on.” Sigurd squints his eyes as he leans forward. He is dead serious, nothing in his demeanor shows that he has just downed half a dozen tankards of beer. “We have to talk about how this ends.”
“We destroy the artefact.”
“Sure you do, but that is not what I mean. I’m talking about how it ends for the red wyrm.The dragon has to die!”
“Well, we already discussed that with your king, technically the dragon doesn’t have to die, he just has to breathe on the artefact so we can smash it to pieces. But that might irate the creature, which explains why we had to guarantee that any acts of revenge on the dwarves or their neighbors will be compensated. So yes, killing him is probably a good option.”
“No, not an option, the only choice you have! At least if you want my help.”
“Ah, YOU want him dead! I see.”
“Yes, and I need you to swear an oath that you’ll kill him or die trying.”
“We’ll have to think about it, but we understand your condition.”
“Good. Then, let’s order lunch, I’m getting hungry. And while we wait for our food, why don’t you all impress me with some prodigious feat, to prove your mettle?”
Elvira tries to magically immobilize Sigurd, but when that fails, she turns him besotted with euphoric tranquility and makes him buy drinks for everyone in the house. Puk hammers an incredibly fast rhythm on the table with the hilt of his sword, onehandedly, while picking the dwarf’s pocket with his other hand and offering to pay yet another round on the dwarf using his purse. Sigurd smacks his hand flat on the table and dares Puk to jab the knife between his fingers. The halfling does so with amazing speed, but also with stunning accuracy, for when the dwarf lifts his hand, his palm has been outlined perfectly in the wood.
Balian simply proposes a duel and turns to the dwarf for an answer. The only reply he gets is a mug aimed at his face, but his spaulder catches the blow. He returns the favor by smacking the dwarf in the face with his fist. Sigurd chuckles, blood glowing on his teeth.
Sjo invites the dwarf to join him outside. He conjures a fierce fire storm around himself, rising from the flames with his fiery wings outspread, then turning into a huge fire elemental and ending his display with a column of electricity that hits the ground just in front of Sigurd, who grumbles: “Fire’s no good against a red one.” “Oh, well, I’m a medic too”, Sjo shrugs.
Sigurd seems content with the display and after lunch, he joins the party to Korvosa, still a bit anxious about using teleport. Elvira takes stock of which rare writings she could offer the green dragon. Three things come to mind. Domina’s library holds a singular tome called Truths about the Sihedron, a work in Infernal detailing the seven Runelords, written by the belier devil Sermignatto when he was still working with Sorshen ten millennia ago. Second are the writings on the wall of the Architect’s tomb, which provide incredible insight in geometry and construction, but drive anyone but the most strong-willed mad, and which would be of interest to a superior scholar as well, as would the writings on the wall of the Sunken Queen, unlocking the powers of blood magic. But Elvira hesitates to release this last source, after all, it holds considerable danger as well. Still, the book on the Runelords makes an excellent opening gift, enough to make any genius salivate. Since she is a brainiac herself, Elvira tries to reread as much of the tome as she can tonight, before she has to say goodbye to it.
10 Pharast 4709 AR
Sigurd has Elvira teleport everyone to Highhelm the next morning, where they take an oath in the temple of Torag, the Father of Creation, to kill the red dragon or die trying. Then they port into the heart of the Arthfell Forest, which is overgrown thick brush, hampering their movement. As Sigurd hones his senses to the sounds of the wood, the party prepares several buffs to move more freely and be bolstered and better protected to face an acid-spitting green dragon.
Suddenly the undergrowth comes to life and clutches at the adventurers’ legs. Elvira, Sigurd and Balian have freedom of movement active, so they are unaffected. Puk is nimble enough to break free, but Sjo gets entangled.
SHAOBAN (SJO), LN Male Human oracle 15
Init +2; Senses Darkvision (60 ft.), Blindsense (30 ft.), Blindsight (15 ft.), Perception +2, Clouded Vision
AC 39, touch 14, flat-footed 37
hp 168 (10 HD)
Fort +14, Ref +13, Will +15
Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)
Melee cold iron mace +2 (heavy) +18/+13/+8 (1d8+6+1d6+7)
Base Atk +11/+6/+1; CMB +15 CMD 29
Known Oracle Spells (CL 15th, concentration +24):
7th (5/day) (DC 26) – cure serious wounds (mass), fire storm, refuge, greater restoration
6th (7/day) (DC 25) – cure moderate wounds (mass), dispel magic (greater), fire seeds, heal, heroes’ feast, planar ally, word of recall
5th (8/day) (DC 24) – breath of life, cure light wounds (mass), flame strike, life bubble, raise dead, spell resistance, summon monster V, true seeing
4th (8/day) (DC 23) - blessing of fervor, cure critical wounds, dimensional anchor, dismissal, divine power, tongues, wall of fire
3rd (9/day) (DC 22) - cure serious wounds, dispel magic, fireball, invisibility purge, prayer, remove blindness/deafness, remove disease
2nd (8/day) (DC 21) - align weapon, cure moderate wounds, hold person, remove paralysis, resist energy, restoration (lesser), shield other, silence
1st (9/day) (DC 20) - burning hands, comprehend languages, cure light wounds, divine favor, hide from undead, magic weapon, protection from chaos, remove fear, shield of faith
0th (at will) (DC 19) - create water, detect magic, detect poison, mending, purify food and drink, read magic, spark, stabilize, virtue
Abilities Str 18, Dex 14, Con 18, Int 8, Wis 14, Cha 28
Feats Armor Proficiency, Heavy, Combat Casting, Elemental Focus (fire); Extra Revelation, Lightning Reflexes, Spell Penetration, Toughness, Weapon Focus (Heavy Mace), Acrobatic steps, Elemental Spell (electricity), Nimble Moves
Skills Acrobatics -1, Bluff +19, Climb +1, Diplomacy +27, Heal +11, Intimidate +23, Knowledge (History) +4, Knowledge (Local) +0, Knowledge (Religion) +17, Linguistics +0, Perception +2, Perform (Act) +13, Perform (Dance) +13, Perform (sing) +15, Ride -1, Sense Motive +17, Sleight of Hand +4, Spellcraft +4, Swim +1
Possessions cold iron mace +2 (heavy); ring of protection +2; mithral full plate +5; amulet of natural armor +5, Sonnorae’s cloak (+4 cha, +4 to saves), buckler +5; belt of physical might (dex/con) +4, Shoanti bracers of strength (+4), runestone of power (level 3), wand of cure light wounds, wand of remove disease
Clouded Vision Your eyes are obscured, making it difficult for you to see.
Flame Mysteries You draw upon the divine mystery of Flame to grant your spells and powers.
Touch of Flame (Su) As a standard action, you can perform a melee touch attack that deals 1d6 points of fire damage + 1 per two oracle levels (1d6+6). Alternatively you can use this power to ignite your weapon as a free action, adding the same amount of fire damage to each of your weapon attacks during that round. You can use this ability a number of times or rounds per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier (10).
At 11th level, any weapon that you wield is treated as a flaming weapon, adding 1d6 points of fire damage + 1 per two oracle levels.
Molten Skin (Ex) You gain resist fire 20.
Wings of Fire (Su) As a swift action, you can manifest a pair of fiery wings that grant you a fly speed of 60 feet with average maneuverability. You can use these wings for 1 minute per day per oracle level. This duration does not need to be consecutive, but it must be spent in 1 minute increments.
Cinder Dance (Ex) Your base speed increases by 10 feet. At 5th level, you receive Nimble Moves as a bonus feat. At 10th level, you receive Acrobatic Steps as a bonus feat.
Form of Flame (Su) As a standard action, you can assume the form of a Huge fire elemental, as elemental body IV. You can use this ability once per day, but the duration is 15 hours.
Fire Storm (Su) As a standard action, you can cause fire to erupt around you. You can create 15 10-foot cubes of fire. These cubes can be arranged in any pattern you desire, but each cube must be adjacent to another and one must be adjacent to you. Any creature caught in these flames takes 15d6 points of fire damage per oracle level, with a Reflex save resulting in half damage. This fire lasts for a number of round equal to your Charisma modifier. You can use this ability once per day.
Trained actor You trained as a child to be an actor. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Perform (act) and Perform (act) is always a class skill for you. You also gain a free skill point in Perform (act).
Child of the Streets You grew up on the streets of a large city, and as a result you have developed a knack for picking pockets and hiding small objects on your person. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Sleight of Hand checks, and Sleight of Hand is always a class skill for you.
Ease of Faith Your mentor, the person who invested your faith in you from an early age, took steps to ensure that you understood that what powers your divine magic is no different than that which powers the magic of other religions. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks, and Diplomacy is always a class skill for you.
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ELVIRA 'EL' CAMPERT, NG Female Human (Taldan) enchanter 15
Init +6; Senses Darkvision (60 ft.), Perception +27
AC 21, touch 15, flat-footed 19
hp 132 (10HD)
Fort +11, Ref +11, Will +17
Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)
Melee masterwork dagger +7/+2 (1d4-1/19-20)
Melee Sorshen’s Sinuous Guisarme +7/+7/+2 (2d4+4/x3)
Ranged masterwork dagger (thrown) +10/+5 (1d4-1/19-20)
Base Atk +7/+2; CMB +6; CMD 21
Wizard Spells known (CL 15th, concentration +24, caster level check 1d20 + 19):
0th (4/day) (DC 17) – Detect Magic, Resistance, Acid Splash, Spark, Ray of Frost, Mage Hand, Light, Ghost Sound, Message, Haunted Fey Aspect, Daze, Mending, Flare, Dancing Lights, Arcane Mark, Open/Close, Prestidigitation
1st (7+1/day) (DC 20) – Charm Person, Color Spray, Comprehend Languages, Disguise Self, Enlarge Person, Feather Fall, Hypnotism, Mage Armor, Memorize Page, Memory Lapse, Mirror Polish, Obscuring Mist, Shield, Touch of Gracelessness, Vanish, Ventriloquism
2nd (6+1/day) (DC 21) – Air Step, Alter Self, Blur, Darkvision, Daze Monster, Glitterdust, Hideous Laughter, Hypnotic Pattern, Invisibility, Knock, Levitate, Mirror Image, See Invisibility, Summon Monster II, Touch of Idiocy, Whispering Wind
3rd (6+1/day) (DC 22) – Blink, Deep Slumber, Dispel Magic, Displacement, Enter Image, Fly, Gaseous Form, Haste, Heroism, Hold Person, Invisibility Sphere, Slow, Suggestion, Water Breathing
4th (6+1/day) (DC 23) – Black Tentacles, Charm Monster, Confusion, Crushing Despair, Dimension Door, Geas (Lesser), Invisibility (Greater), Moonstruck, Phantasmal Killer, Rainbow Pattern, Stoneskin
5th (6+1/day) (DC 24) – Baleful Polymorph, Cone of Cold, Dominate Person, Feeblemind, Hold Monster, Mind Fog, Permanency, Seeming, Telekinesis, Teleport, Wall of Force, Wall of Stone
6th (4+1) (DC 25) – Disintegrate, Greater Dispel Magic, Flesh to Stone, Forceful Hand, Greater Heroism, Stone to Flesh, Mass Suggestion
7th (3+1) (DC 26) – Delayed Blast Fireball, Ethereal Jaunt, Grasping Hand, Mage’s Magnificent Mansion, Prismatic Spray, Greater Teleport, Vision
8th (2+1) (DC 27) – Euphoric Tranquility, Mind Blank
Abilities Str 9, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 29, Wis 14, Cha 18
Permanent spells Darkvision, Detect Magic, Read Magic, See Invisibility
Feats Bouncing Spell, Combat Casting, Greater Spell Focus (Enchantment), Greater Spell Penetration, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Persistent Spell, Quicken Spell, Spell Focus (Enchantment), Spell Penetration, Spell Perfection (Greater Invisibility), Toughness, Scribe Scroll
Skills Acrobatics +3, Appraise +14, Bluff +25, Climb 0, Craft (Glass) +16, Diplomacy +29, Escape Artist +3, Fly +3, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (Arcana) +28, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) +17, Knowledge (Engineering) +18, Knowledge (Geography) +23, Knowledge (History) +28, Knowledge (Nature) +19, Knowledge (Nobility) +19, Knowledge (Planes) +28, Knowledge (Religion) +18, Linguistics +28, Perception +27, Perform (Act) +24, Ride +3, Sense Motive +18, Spellcraft +28, Stealth +3, Survival +3, Swim 0
Languages Abyssal, Ancient Osiriani, Azlanti, Celestial, Chelaxian, Common, Daemon, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Gnome, Infernal, Kelish, Osiriani, Shoanti, Tektrianin, Thassilonian, Varisian, Vudrani
Possessions amulet of natural armor +2; eyes of the eagle; headband of vast intelligence +6 (bluff, perform (act) and sense motive skill bonus); ring of lover’s lightning; Sorshen’s scintillating garment, pearl of power (1st level); pearl of power (2nd level), emerald ellipsoid ioun stone (2x), stone of good luck; 2 spellbooks; masterwork dagger
Arcane Bond (Su) You have selected to establish a powerful arcane bond with an object, a mirror that is part of your amulet of natural armor +2. When attempting to cast a spell without your bonded object worn or in hand, you must make a concentration check or lose the spell (DC 20 + the spell's level).
Aura of Despair (Su) As a standard action, you can emit a 30-foot aura of despair for 15 rounds per day. Enemies within this aura take a -2 penalty on ability checks, attack rolls, damage rolls, saving throws, and skill checks. These rounds do not need to be consecutive. This is a mind-affecting effect.
Dazing Touch (Sp) You can cause a living creature to become dazed for 1 round as a melee touch attack. Creatures with more than 15 hit dice are unaffected. You may use this ability 12 times per day.
Enchantment School You have chosen to specialize in enchantment spells.
Divination and Necromancy Opposition School You have chosen divination and necromancy spells as an opposition school. Preparing a divination or necromancy spell takes up two spell slots of the same level. You take a -4 penalty on any skill checks made when crafting a magic item that has a divination or necromancy spell as a prerequisite.
Enchanting Smile (Su) You gain a +5 enhancement bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate and Perform (act) skill checks.
Sonnorae’s boon of spontaneous casting (Su)[b] You can dedicate three spells per day to cast as spontaneous spells. You don’t have to study them, but you can substitute a studied spell of the same or higher level for these spells.
[b]Student of perception You have studied the art of perception in depth. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Perception checks and Perception is always a class skill for you.
Natural born actress You have a natural knack for acting. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Perform (Act) skill checks and the skill is always considered a class skill for you. You also gain a free skill point in this skill.
Natural charm You possess a natural charm that makes it easy to talk to others. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy and it is always a class skill for you.
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BALIAN, CG Male Human ranger 15 (urban ranger)
Init +7; Senses Perception +21
AC 34, touch 21, flat-footed 29
hp 222 (10 HD)
Fort +19, Ref +19, Will +15
Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)
Melee forceblade greatsword +3 (two handed) +27/+22/+17 two handed) 2d6+15/19-20)
Melee forceblade greatsword +3 (two handed, power attack) +27/+18/+13 2d6+27/19-20)
Melee dagger+2 +25/+20/+15 (1d4+10/19-20)
Ranged masterwork longbow (composite/strength rating+4) +21/+16/+11 (1d8+4/x3)
Base Atk +15/+10/+5; CMB +19/+14/+9; CMD 38
Ranger Spells (CL 12th, concentration +15):
1st (4/day) (DC 14) - lead blades (2), longstrider (2)
2nd (3/day) (DC 15) - barkskin (3)
3rd (3/day) (DC 16) - instant enemy (3)
4th (1/day) (DC 17) - freedom of movement
Abilities Str 27, Dex 20, Con 20, Int 7, Wis 17, Cha 9
Special Qualities Favored Community Korvosa +4, Track +7, Trapfinding +7
Feats Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Favored Defense (human +4 AC and CMD), Following Step, Furious Focus, Iron Will, Outflank, Power Attack (-4 atk, +8 dmg/+12 dmg on 2-handed), Shield of Swings, Step Up, Step Up and Strike, Weapon Focus (greatsword)
Skills Acrobatics +18, Climb +12, Diplomacy -1, Disable Device +26, Heal +7, Intimidate +13, Knowledge (Geography) +2, Knowledge (Local) +16, Perception +21, Perform (Act) +4, Ride +8, Sense Motive +3, Sleight of Hand +9, Stealth +22, Survival +7, Survival (Follow or identify tracks) +14, Swim +11
Possessions holy adamantine greatsword +1, forceblade greatsword +3; ring of splendor (+5 AC and saves); mithral breastplate +5; amulet of natural armor +2; belt of physical perfection +4; cloak of displacement (minor); wand of cure light wounds; dusty rose prism ioun stone, emerald ellipsoid ioun stone (4x) dagger +2; masterwork longbow (Composite/Strength Rating+4); winged boots, headband of inspired wisdom +4
Favored Community Korvosa and Kaer Maga (Ex) You gain a +4 bonus on initiative checks and Knowledge (local), Perception, Stealth, and Survival skill checks. An urban ranger traveling through his favored community leaves no trail and cannot be tracked (although he may leave a trail if he so desires).
Favored Community Janderhoff (Ex) You gain a +2 bonus on initiative checks and Knowledge (local), Perception, Stealth, and Survival skill checks. An urban ranger traveling through his favored community leaves no trail and cannot be tracked (although he may leave a trail if he so desires).
Favored Enemy (Human +8, Undead +2, Evil outsider +2, Construct +2) (Ex) You gain a +8/+2/+2/+2 bonus on Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks when using these skills against humans/undead/evil outsiders. Likewise, you get a +8/+2/+2/+2 bonus on weapon attack and damage rolls against such creatures.
Favored defense (human+3) You add half your favored enemy bonus to your CMD and as a dodge bonus to AC when attacked by favored enemy (human).
Push Through (Ex) An urban ranger is never slowed by difficult terrain in his favored communities. In addition, he can move through the space occupied by local citizens as if they were allies. This does not apply to creatures intent on harming the ranger. Areas that are enchanted or magically manipulated to impede motion, however, still affect him.
Quarry (Ex) You can, as a standard action, denote one target within your line of sight as your quarry. Whenever you are following the tracks of your quarry, you can take 10 on Survival skill checks while moving at normal speed, without penalty. In addition, you receive a +2 insight bonus on attack rolls made against your quarry and all critical threats are automatically confirmed. You can have no more than one quarry at a time and the creature's type must correspond to one of your favored enemy types. You can end this effect at any time as a free action, but you cannot select a new quarry for 24 hours. If your quarry is killed, you can select a new quarry after waiting 1 hour.
Track (Ex) Add half your level (+7) to Survival skill checks made to follow tracks.
Trapfinding (Ex) At 3rd level, an urban ranger can find and disable traps, as the rogue class feature of the same name: +7 to perception to find traps.
Trained actor You trained as a child to be an actor. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Perform (act) and Perform (act) is always a class skill for you. You also gain a free skill point in Perform (act).
Child of the Streets You grew up on the streets of a large city, and as a result you have developed a knack for picking pockets and hiding small objects on your person. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Sleight of Hand checks, and Sleight of Hand is always a class skill for you.
Reactionary You were bullied often as a child, but never quite developed an offensive response. Instead, you became adept at anticipating sudden attacks and reacting to danger quickly. You gain a +2 trait bonus on Initiative checks.
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PUK, CG Male Halfling rogue 15 (swashbuckler)
Init +9; Senses Perception +14
AC 35, touch 25, flat-footed 35, uncanny dodge, improved uncanny dodge
hp 137 (10 HD)
Fort +12, Ref +21 (evasion), Will +8, +5 morale bonus vs. fear, +2 racial bonus vs. fear
Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)
Melee main hand silver short sword +4 (small) +24/+19+/+14 (1d4+4/19-20) and off-hand adamantine short sword luckblade +2 (small) +22/+17/+12 (1d4+2/19-20)
Base Atk +11/+6/+1; CMB +10; CMD 34
Atk Options Sneak Attack +8d6 + 8 bleed
Abilities Str 10, Dex 29, Con 16, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 16
Feats Acrobatic Steps, Dodge, Greater Two-weapon Fighting, Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, Lucky Halfling, Martial Weapon Proficiency (Halfling Sling Staff), Nimble Moves, Outflank, Two-Weapon Fighting, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (short sword)
Skills Acrobatics +28, Acrobatics (Jump) +33, Appraise +11, Bluff +17, Climb +10, Diplomacy +13, Disable Device +18, Disguise +15, Escape Artist +21, Intimidate +9 (+2 vs. medium-sized), Knowledge (Dungeoneering) +4, Knowledge (Local) +6, Linguistics +4, Perception +14, Perform (Percussion Instruments) +11, Ride +9, Sense Motive +10, Sleight of Hand +17, Stealth +24, Use Magic Device +9
Possessions small silver short sword +4; small short sword luckblade +2; bracers of armor +8; shortbow (Small); halfling sling staff (halfling); small masterwork sap, amulet of natural armor +2, ring of protection +3, ring of featherfall; cloak of the Pixie King (+2 on saves, Dimension Door 1/day), belt of incredible dexterity +6, headband of alluring charisma +4, boots of striding and springing, dusty rose prism ioun stone, emerald ellipsoid ioun stone (2x)
Sneak Attack (Ex) If you can catch an opponent when he is unable to defend himself effectively from your attack, you can strike a vital spot for extra damage. Your attack deals 8d6 points of extra damage.
Bleeding Attack (Ex) A rogue with this ability can cause living opponents to bleed by hitting them with a sneak attack. This attack causes the target to take 1 additional point of damage each round for each die of the rogue's sneak attack. Bleeding creatures take that amount of damage every round at the start of each of their turns. The bleeding can be stopped by a DC 15 Heal check or the application of any effect that heals hit point damage. Bleeding damage bypasses any damage reduction the creature might possess.
Resiliency (Ex) Once per day, a rogue with this ability can gain a number of temporary hit points equal to the rogue's level. Activating this ability is an immediate action that can only be performed when she is brought to below 0 hit points. This ability can be used to prevent her from dying. These temporary hit points last for 1 minute. If the rogue's hit points drop below 0 due to the loss of these temporary hit points, she falls unconscious and is dying as normal.
Opportunist (Ex) The rogue can make an attack of opportunity against an opponent who has just been struck for damage in melee by another character. This attack counts as an attack of opportunity for that round and can't be used more than once per round.
Unwitting Ally (Ex) A rogue with this talent can spend a swift action to attempt to make an opponent act like an ally for purposes of providing a flank until the beginning of the rogue's next turn. The opponent must be able to hear and see the rogue, and the rogue must succeed at a Bluff check opposed by the opponent's Sense Motive. If the check succeeds, the opponent acts as an ally for the purpose of providing a flank. Whether or not the check succeeds, the rogue cannot use this trick again on the same opponent for the next 24 hours. If the rogue fails the check by 5 or more, she cannot use the unwitting ally ability on any opponent within line of sight of the failed attempt for 24 hours.
Fast-Talker You had a knack at getting yourself into trouble as a child, and as a result developed a silver tongue at an early age. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Bluff checks, and Bluff is always a class skill for you.
Personal Addiction You were the addict. You blame Gaedren for your brush with death and hate how his drugs are causing similar problems among other youths. Fortunately, your body recovers quickly from toxins, and you have a +1 bonus on Fortitude saving throws.
One simply doesn’t walk into a dragon’s lair, no, these mighty beings have other, lesser creatures who guard their territory. In the case of Tasathyl, the green wyrm, these guardians are plants. Trying to move through the thick brush in the heart of the Arthfell Forest, Sjo suddenly becomes entangled in the writhing undergrowth, while the tree looming over the party jerks to life. Elvira provides haste and makes Puk invisible, so he can jab his blades into the treant’s weakest points unseen, with the two animal pets distract the tree from the other side. Sigurd fires several arrows in the tough bark and sees how another tree crushes in from the left and the plant mass behind him lashes out with long vines. Balian proves his worth to the dragonslayer, by calling instant enemy over the second treant and chopping the plant to firewood in no time. Sjo frees himself from the entanglement and invokes a fire storm to set the attackers on fire. The treants swipe at the party with heavy branches and Balian’s pet cat Vex and Sigurd’s pet wolverine General Flea get knocked down. Sjo keeps up moral with some healing, giving his friends the chance to end the threat. First Puk finishes off the other treant, then he takes care of the greenvise vine.
The group heals up and quickly resumes travel, guided by Sigurd’s nature instinct. When he gets the feeling they are getting close, a sweet perfume fills the air. Puk is entranced and sits down on the ground, gently swaying, while the others draw their weapons when they see a large flower unfold its petals, revealing a green-skinned woman from the waist up in its center instead of the pistil. “Sit down, relax,” she sings peacefully, “I mean you no harm.” Small hairlike roots grow from the ground and glide over Puk’s legs. “Oh, that tickles”, the halfling giggles.
“We mean no harm either”, Sjo reacts. “But what do you want from our little friend here? He’s quite fragile.”
“I won’t kill him, I just need some of his sap to feed on, but not a lot.” The green face smiles innocently.
“We might be willing to accommodate you, but is there anything you can do for us in return?” Elvira inquires, recognizing the attractive plant as an alraune. She remembers reading about them in a hefty tome on flora in the library: alraunes have spores with a special ability, that might be of use to the party. If you dip your hand in a spore sack and then touch another person with it, you can create a spore link that allows you to cast one touch spell from a distance, using the spores to bridge the gap. The special power lasts for about a week or until consumed and could be of crucial importance in the fight against Daralathyxl. A caster with two hands can designate two targets (or one target twice), one for each hand. “Could we have some of your spores?”
“Such is the way of nature: live and let live. If you help me, I will gladly help you out as well.”
And so it is done. Puk, Balian and Elvira allow the alraune to drain some of their stamina, which Sjo can easily mend afterwards. As a reward, anyone who can cast spells can create two spore links. Elvira bonds with Puk and Balian, while Sjo sets up two connections with the ranger. If they have to face an all-powerful dragon, Balian will have to get in close, so he will certainly take a mean punishment. Being able to cast two heal spells from a 100 feet away, will certainly allow Sjo to boost Balian’s tanking potential, even more so if he can combine it with shield other.
The trek through the forest continues. About fifteen minutes later, Sigurd points to the canopy. “There is a hole in trees there”, he says. The others look up, but see no hole. “You’re not looking at it right”, the dwarf grumbles.” The hole is not open to the air, but there are no sturdy boughs, just a clutch of smaller twigs and bendy branches.”
Balian rolls his eyes in disbelief, but when they approach the ‘hole’, it turns out to be straight above another hole in the ground, leading into a cave. “This is where the dragon breaks through the trees, to get into the cave”, Sigurd explains. “Green dragons are like rangers, well … real rangers, no city slickers”, the dwarf sighs, giving Balian the stinky eye. “they can move through bushes and briars and stuff unhindered.”
Elvira takes out the ancient Thassilonian tome and walks up to the edge of the pit. Peeking inside the cave, she sees that the roots of the trees surrounding the hole, have grown through the ceiling, re-entering the soil at the bottom, forming a natural meshwork around the entry point. “Oh, mighty dragon Tasathyl, we humbly seek your council”, she cries out. “Please accept this gift from us as a token of good will. This tome was penned more than 10 millennia ago. A worthy present for one as great as you.”
Elvira holds her breath, waiting for a response, but nothing happens. She tries again: “We beseech you, great Tasathyl, grant us an audience in return for this priceless book.”
When there still is no answer, Elvira motions for her friends to enter. “Please forgive us, great green one, but may we come in?” Then she floats down into the hole, followed by the rest of her companions. As they touch ground, a cloud of spores explodes around them. Again Puk falls under the plants’ sway, admiring their strength and beauty. At the same time four humanoid creatures, made of wood, burst from the roots, attacking with incredible speed. Their shapes blur and shimmer as they hammer their thorny arms on the invaders. Two of the big stalks also twist and turn like a serpent, lashing out with large vinelike tendrils. Elvira uses her newest opening move: quickened greater invisibility on herself and haste on the group. Sjo also recognizes this as a perfect opportunity to try out his latest trick, his innate fire storm ability, which will not only allow him to cast a blazing inferno, but he can keep it up for over half a minute, continuing to burn specific areas around him. The fire-wielding healer assumes plants don’t like fire, and even though he is right, these sturdy rootlike being are not particularly vulnerable to being burnt either. On the contrary even, sometimes the thorny men move so fast that they evade all the flames. Puk, who blunders about mesmerized, gets targeted by two of the quickwoods. “Ouch, that stings”, he whines when they smash their thorns into his flesh. Elvira throws around more buffs, heroism, while Sjo continues to burn the plants with his fire storm and resorts to mass cure spells to support the party. One of the viper vines almost gets torn to shreds by Balian’s forceblade, which cuts through the sinewy material like a knife through butter. Elvira notices that the vine is near destruction and finishes the job with her first casting of the [i[magic missile[/i] spell ever. Five darts of energy appear seemingly out of nowhere and unerringly strike the viper vine, which stops moving. Sigurd, who is swinging his greataxe, takes down one of the quickthorns, which was already severely burnt by Sjo’s magic. Elvira slows the enemies, making it easier for Sjo to keep up healing everyone at once. But it is the king’s fire that turns the battle in the heroes’ favor, because one by one, the plants creatures fall under the flames.
Through the curtain of roots, Sigurd sees a tunnel, leading deeper underground. It looks like Tasathyl’s lair consists of more than just one cave. The tube is filled with sour mist, but Sjo’s protections from acid safeguards everyone from its sting. The floor, walls and ceiling also glisten with moisture, which feels slimy to the touch. Sigurd leads the way. Normally the dwarf can see perfectly in the dark, but the mist clouds his vision. Suddenly he bumps into a transparent wall. Fortunately, the slime does not adhere to him as he is still affected by freedom of movement. The party realizes that the way forward is completely blocked by slime and sees that the way back fills up with slime as well. Now both directions are clogged.
From behind the wall of slime, a slender, vaguely humanoid female figure, who looks to be made of green and yellow ooze, approaches. She almost seems to be swimming through the slime. Her voice calls out: “Why are you here?”
Elvira steps forward. “We humbly seek an audience with Lady Tasathyl. We bring her a priceless gift, a book that is over 10,000 years old, just to be able to talk to her. We have an important mission that requires us to confront the red tyrant, who is Tasathyl’s enemy as well. We were wondering if we could help each other out.”
“Show me this book you speak of.”
“I dread to take it out, the slime would destroy it”, Elvira claims.
The slime wall changes into the giant face of the ooze woman. Then it forms into an arm and hand, which extends to Elvira’s shoulder, and gently strokes it. Even through her magic acid protection Elvira can tell that this touch does not burn. “The book will not be harmed, please give it to me, so I can present it to my mistress. Then she can decide if this gift warrants a meeting.”
Elvira pulls the Truths about the Sihedron out of one of her dimensional pockets and holds it out to the hand of slime. The hand accepts the gift, then pulls the tome into the wall, where it drifts out of view.
About ten minutes later the ooze creature returns. She drops the slimy obstructions and nods to the party. “My mistress appreciates your understanding of which knowledge is truly valuable and has agreed to speak to you. Please follow me.” She leads the heroes into a big cave, which is almost completely filled by a big pool of water. Standing on the bank, the adventurers with darkvision can just make out another rocky shore across the water.
Suddenly a voice rings out. “What do a dwarf, a halfling and three humans want from me?”
Elvira answers: “Great lady Tasathyl. We thank you for your time. We have learned we have an enemy in common, the red menace Daralathyxl.” Behind the enchantress Sigurd grunts as she speaks the dragon’s name.
“It is true, Daralathyxl and I have met in battle before, more than once. We are no friends and I care not whether he lives or dies, but I’m certainly not consumed by the desire the end his existence. What would I gain from allying with you in this venture?”
“We hail from Korvosa, a city to the west, which has a big library. Maybe there are books there you haven’t read yet. We also own an extensive private library, with rarer tomes. The book we gave you comes from there. We would grant you access to both places. Also, as you surely know, Korvosa used to be the domain of Runelord Sorshen, Eurythnia. We have uncovered several of her secrets, including her tomb. Some of these places hold powerful magical inscriptions, which we would gladly allow you to study.”
“That sounds interesting.”
“There is even a person in Korvosa who has a pass into the Fallen Fastness in Dis, the infernal library which is supposed to hold a copy of every record ever written. This person is not exactly our friend, but we could get you in touch with him nevertheless, if you so desire.”
“Hmm, defeating the red tyrant grants you access to his immense hoard. There might be an item or two in there that interests me as well”, the voice says.
“I suppose that could be arranged, although our goal is not to steal the dragon’s gold. On the contrary, we have promised to return his treasure to the people he stole it from, the dwarves and the humans in the neighborhood. Still, we could possibly persuade the dwarven High King to part with a small selection. Note, though, that there is an axe in Daralathyxl’s hoard that is of special value to the dwarves. You would not be able to pick that.”
“I have heard about this Axe of Dwarvish Lords,” Tasathyl responds, “and that is not the kind of reward I’m after. If I were to aid you, I would claim, let’s say … three items from the hoard … and I would get first choice.”
“Agreed.”
“Now, why would you think that you could ever defeat the mighty red wyrm? He is, after all, a god on this world and nearly invincible. What makes you the ones who can triumph where hundreds of others have failed?”
“Well, we already have a powerful ally, one who led us to you. An enemy of dragons who kill others out of greed, but a friend to those who do no harm to the innocent. His name is Sigurd.”
“Ah, the Dragondoom dwarf. Your reputation precedes you, good sir. I hope you do not come here to seek my destruction.”
“As long as the people around here look at you as a hero and not with dread, I would never contemplate harming you, milady. I only seek to end those of your kind who pillage and kill without provocation. My moniker only applies to them, not you.”
“Alright then. This dwarf is an asset.”
“As you would be, milady, a necessary asset, I might add”, Elvira flatters. “And of course, we are not without skill ourselves.”
“Lillian, my servant, already informed me that you fought quite well against my plant guardians, and that you only fought when necessary, which is indeed a good sign. But if you face Daralathyxl, skill alone will not be enough. The great wyrm is so powerful that he could simply crush you, despite your skill.”
“Told you …” Sigurd interrupts, “take everything you think you know about the mightiest of dragons and multiply that by ten!”
“Quite right, sir Sigurd. Do you know how I survived my fights against Daralathyxl? It is not because of my strength. As you can guess, I am quite capable myself, but no match for the likes of the great red wyrm. Still, the tyrant is so all-powerful that he overestimates himself. He gets cocky and doesn’t always use the best tactics, because – mostly – he doesn’t have to. So you have to be smarter than him, take your advantage where you can find it and avoid giving him the upper hand strategically. So my question for you is this, are you smart enough to overcome adverse odds?”
“How can we prove ourselves to you?” Elvira offers, confident of her own intelligence.
“Solve me these riddles, little one.
Throw me on my back
Then open me by hand
And fondly still your hunger
Until you understand.”
Elvira ponders the words, but it is Balian who suggests the answer: “A book.’
“Correct. How about this one?
It stands alone, with no bone or solid form.
Adamant, it prospers, never wrong, though hurt it may.
Twistable, malleable, might it be,
but always straight as an arrow.”
Again Balian comes up with the answer: “The truth.”
“One more.
What can bring back the dead,
make us cry,
make us laugh,
make us young,
is born in an instant
yet lasts a lifetime?”
Once more Balian’s street smarts prevails: “A memory.”
“Alright, then, little ones. Tell me your names and we will make a deal. I will aid you.”
“Of course, pardon our bad manners. My name is Elvira Campert, and these are my companions, king Shaoban Onemaker of Korvosa, his Hand, lord Balian and our loyal friend Puk the halfling. And we already told you about Sigurd. Pleased to make your acquaintance.
A loud splash sounds from somewhere deeper in the complex. The pool of water ripples with waves, then a great shape bursts from the surface. It is a gargantuan green dragon, who glides onto the shore at the other end of the cave. “Then let us commit our agreement to paper”, the dragon says. She utters a few magical words and shifts into the human-sized form of a draconian woman. On a sheet of parchment she draws up a contract in the most beautifyul handwriting. She agrees to help the party fight Daralathyxl if they agree to let her have three items from his hoard (though not the dwarven axe). They also have to allow her to come and go to Korvosa as she pleases, to consult any available source of knowledge. She invites the party to cross the pool and sign the deal. “Now remember,”, she concludes, “when you are outmatched physically, you’ll have to be smarter than your opponent to prevail. I hope you can devise a winning tactic.”
The heroes make a list of all the buffs they want to be active when facing Daralathyxl. Elvira also informs Tasathyl about their true purpose: destroying the Crown of Fangs. She even shows the green dragon the artefact inside the special birdcage she commissioned. Tasathyl confirms Elvira’s hope that her mind blank spell guards the crown from being easily identified, but she can still sniff out that whatever is in the cage, comes from a mighty dragon. Naturally, she has heard of the legendary wyrm Kazavon and the mighty artefacts he left behind upon dying. Fortunately, she is not drawn to the object, because she understands the danger of such artefacts. However powerful they might be, they influence and corrupt the mind, which is not a prospect that appeals to her.
The party teleports to Korvosa, bringing their new dragon ally along. They meet up with Darb Tuttle and Keppira d’Bear and ask the two highpriests to assist them in their upcoming quest, but from the safety of Castle Korvosa. The priests can provide extra buffs for the party in the morning and remain in the palace with other allies to watch over Brienna, the innocent girl who will have to smash the Fangs after Daralathyxl has breathed over them. If everything goes according to plan, Elvira will first face the red tyrant’s fiery breath in his lair, upon which she will immediately teleport to Korvosa to have Brienna finish the job. Since Elvira cannot predict if the destruction of the Fangs will have any side-effects, she would feel better if there is a good security detail in place around Brienna, just in case anything unexpected happens.
11 Pharast 4709 AR
After a hearty heroes’ feast the party teleports to the gates of Jernashall, the lost dwarven city where Daralathyxl has made his lair. Sigurd’s honed senses immediately pick up two wyverns in the sky above them. He draws his bow and fires a vlloey of arrows at one of the creatures, proving his efficiency against dragons to his new friends when he shoots the beast out of the air before it can even get ready for battle. The other wyvern, however, charges in, but its barbed tongue glides off Sjo’s armor. That was the last mistake the creature ever made. Balian flies up and hacks through its flesh with his blade, Sjo throws a fireball at it, while Tasathyl, in her Draconian form, spits a line of acid at it. But once again, it is Sigurd who proves the most effective as he turns the second wyvern into a pincushion as well.
After this very brief encounter the companions take some time to appreciate the beauty of the gates to Jernashall. Huge stone doors are set in the mountain wall, flanked by two even more enormous statues of austere dwarven warriors. The doors and the wall are covered in straight geometric patterns, with a sobriety that is surprisingly beautiful. Elvira notices that magic protects the entrance, making out an alarm spell amid the defenses. Sjo dispels it and Tasathyl uses a simple dimension door to get everyone inside.
A long monumental hall leads into the mountain. Balian identifies another magical trap on the floor and disables it, before the party advances. After about a quarter mile, the hall opens up into a humongous cavern. The floor drops into darkness, while the ceiling rises to incredible height. A 300’-long bridge crosses the chasm, leading up to a huge opening in the opposite wall. Looming high above that doorway is the stone face of a regal dwarf, looking down on the heroes. Two waterfalls fall from under his moustache, one to the left of the bridge, the other to the right, creating a split beard of water that plummets into the depths below. A huge humanoid shadow stands in the middle of the span, a creature mad of stone.
Puk and Balian rush forward. Invoking his instant enemy Balian immediately slices his forceblade into the stone construct’s stomach. But then the ranger is surprised by a spider that phases out of thin air and attacks him with all her legs. A human face rises from her body crowned with red hair and armed with sharp fangs, which also bite at Balian. After her attacks, the spider phases out of view again, although Elvira’s enhanced magical sight still picks up a gray shadow of her, indicating that the creature has shifted into the ethereal plane. The enchantress casts haste on Puk and Balian, which is followed by a blessing of fervor from Sjo. Sigurd unleashes a volley of arrows, but his weapons hardly pierce the stone skin. The guardian is not particularly agile, but his brute slam simply smashes Balian into the ground, leaving the ranger stunned. Tasathyl storms into the fray as well, morphing to her full dragon form, and biting into the stone behemoth’s arm. Puk starts carving away at the guardian’s heels, finding his adamantine sword much more efficient than his silver blade. When the phase spider reappears, she is next to the halfling, ripping away at his little frame, before phasing out again. Elvira fires magic missiles at the arachnid, piercing the boundaries to the ethereal plane with her force magic. The stone construct smacks Puk into the ground next, but then Tasathyl tears into him and throws him off the bridge. The spider reappears and attacks Balian once more, but now the heroes are prepared. Sigurd shoots at her, while Elvira covers her in glitterdust. This outlines her to Balian, who can take full advantage of his forceblade to finish her off.
Past the bridge the party enters a long, monumental hall. The walls are decorated in a structure that looks sober, but impressive, because of its size and the endless variations in the pattern. From deeper down the corridor, Elvira picks up booming voices. Puck scouts ahead, identifying four fire giants with three even bigger cousins. The heroes advance slowly, ready for battle. When they are in range, Elvira opens hostilities by casting confusion, confounding two enemies. Tasathyl provides haste for the party, while Sjo transfers one of his fireballs to electricity, lighting up the giants’ guard detail. Sigurd shoots a volley of arrows at the first giant charging in, turning it into a pin cushion. Sjo throws even more electricity down the hall and Elvira turns Puk invisible. The party’s newest ally now shifts into her dragon form, towering over even the tallest of their giant opponents. Elvira slows down the adversaries’ advance even more by blocking off the corridor with a wall of force. Although the giants can still climb over it, they waste valuable time doing so. Unseen, Puk can slice into his enemies mercilessly, while Balian fights with the same fervour as ever, swinging his greatsword with a strength that makes even the biggest giant cringe in pain. Elvira uses her magic missiles to finish off an opponent who barely survived the devastation wrought by Puk and Balian, while to her left Tasathyl tears out the throat of a volcano giant. All in all, this fight is a clear demonstration of the heroes’ efficiency in working together and using the right tactics at the opportune time. A few moments later, each and every one of their enemies lies on the floor, while none of the companions has even taken a scratch.
Sigurd is quite pleased, even though he can’t help but repeat that these are mere minions, cannon fodder, peanuts in comparison to the red tyrant. “Still,” he says, “if we continue down this hall, we’ll have to fight our way past a lot more of these bastards. It might be best to avoid them. After all, the great hall in this dwarven bastion lies deep under the ground, somewhere far below us. The shortest way between two points is not the zigzag of the way ahead, but a straight line.” The dwarf grabs the edges of his cloak, stretching his arms like bat wings, and flies up to the dwarven statue against the wall. He disappears behind the behemoth’s head, pulling at something the heroes cannot see. “There we are”, he smiles, turning to his allies, holding out an iron grate. “We can get into the ventilation system here and take a short-cut.”
The party climbs down the ventilation shaft for a few minutes until they get to an iron door. “This will be the maintenance room”, Sigurd figures. “It’s a hub in the system. Let’s go in and see if we find a way that leads directly into the great hall.”
Balian picks the lock, opening the door. The companions enter an L-shaped room with a large machine that still functions, even after all these centuries. “We dwarves build things to last”, Sigurd is very impressed with the mechanism, and starts studying it. Across the room, Elvira sees a copper plate on the wall with a schematic of the various ventilation shafts that connect to this room, picking out the one that leads straight to their destination. Balian lays his hands on the appropriate door; it is warm to the touch, even hot. At that moment he hears a rumble from behind the door. No! Not from behind the door, but from the wall to his left. Suddenly the stones cracks open and two large monsters in chitinous plates burst out. They have the features of a beetle, complete with a huge pair of mandibles, but move like a gorilla. Four multifaceted eyes glisten on their foreheads, confoundingly reflecting the light in a million shifting colours. Fortunately, the heroes withstand the confusion. Hastened by Elvira, Puk and Balian make short work of these monsters, but then the halfling gets too cocky, enjoying this easy victory. From the hole in the wall, a huge claw shoots out, the arm is as thick as a tree. It grabs the rogue and pulls him into the darkness. This time the multifaceted reflection of the light manages to befuddle him, and as he shakes his head in confusion, he feels the bite of strong jaws. Sigurd fires arrows at the huge creature in the wall. “Did I mention that the dwarves used to domesticate umber hulks, to dig these shafts? I guess this is their offspring, although I’ve never seen one as big as this hulking attrocity!”
Balian jumps forward, taking a hit himself before he can deliver one. Tasathyl assumes her dragon form again and tears off the monster’s shoulder plate. Things look bleak for Puk , who realizes the creature is about to swallow him, but below him Balian is hacking away away at the umber hulk furiously. “Time for another power word kill”, Elvira jokes, launching magic missiles at the aberration to finish it off. The hulk drops to the floor and Puk climbs out if its mouth. “I’m okay!” he sighs.
Sjo heals everyone and the party continues on their way down. The new shaft feels a lot warmer and is blocked off by a huge grate, but Balian manages to open a small hatch that allows them to get through. The width of the shaft varies from 15’ to 7’, while the walls become smoother now. “We should be careful”, Sigurd warns his allies, “if this ventilation shaft connects to the great hall and the dragon is in there, it might hear us. Dragon senses are sharp! We should be quiet.” Sjo, in his full plate armour, chuckles. “I can’t be quiet in this”, he points out, “but I can make it quiet if I have to.” He casts silence on a copper coin.
Further down a side tunnel splits off. At one time in the past, lava has flown in this tunnel, and it has left a plug of molten lava in the shaft, leaving just a few small gaps. Puk can squeeze his way through, while the rest of the party pops down with dimension door. The air becomes warmer and smokier, harder to breathe as well, while the companions complete the last part of their journey down to where the shaft ends in another metal grate. Staring through, the heroes realize they have reached the ceiling of a truly humongous cavern. Once upon a time this was the heart of the dwarven citadel of Jernashall, an inner city of gigantic proportions, but now it looks more like the heart of a volcano: lava flows and glows over the floor like a lake and heat trembles in the air. The sidewalls of this enormous cavern once held dozens, if not hundreds of buildings, connected by stone stairs, bridges and walkways. The magma has destroyed much of the original architecture, although rocky outcroppings pop up from the lava pool here and there.
Elvira looks around carefully, one part of the architecture seems strangely untouched by the lava, a massive slab of stone, with a dark shape on top, curled up and sleeping. Even from this distance Elvira can tell its size is colossal. Behind this resting colossus the walls are engraved with the likeness of a dwarven king, flanked by two guards, remnants of a better time. The regal composure that radiates from this corner of the cave suggests it once housed the throne of the dwarven king, but now it has become the lair of another, more terrible monarch, a sleeping dragon. There he lies, wings folded like a bat, a vast monstrosity, smoke rising from his nostrils as he breathes steadily. His head is as big as a house and rests lazily on piles of coins and valuables, glistening in a red glow. Elvira gasps for air.
This is Daralathyxl and even in sleep, he strikes fear into the hearts of those who gaze upon him.
This is the sixth king of the Mountains, rightfully called ‘emperor’ or ‘god’ by some.
This is evil incarnate.
Gazing down on the enormous sleeping red dragon, Elvira whispers to her friends to climb back up the ventilation shaft to a place from where she can safely teleport everyone to Korvosa. However, as she utters these few hushed words, the wyrm below her sighs audibly and shifts his left paw, pushing through the coins in his gold bed. The enchantress holds her breath and waits for one, two three heartbeats … nothing … four, five … no, she doesn’t hear anything anymore … six, seven … It appears the dragon only stirred in his sleep; it is safe to continue. The enchantress motions for her companions to follow. Up and up they go, until El finally feels comfortable enough to speak the words that magically transport the party home to Korvosa.
The rest of the evening the party finetunes their plans for tomorrow’s raid. Their first priority is getting the Crown of Fangs breathed upon with dragon fire and having innocent little Brienna smash it to smithereens. Only when that is accomplished, can they continue with their second goal: taking out the red wyrm.
11 Pharast 4709 AR
The party’s most capable allies have gathered in Castle Korvosa, among them Field Marshal Cressida Kroft, fencing master Vencarlo Orisini, several members of the Sable Company and seneschal Neolandus Kalepopolis. If everything goes according to plan, the heroes will return here as soon as the red dragon has breathed fire on the crown, so Brienna can finish the job of destroying it. Of course, nobody knows what will happen after that. Will Kazavon’s teeth just be gone or will they have another surprise ready to avoid annihilation and lash out at the last moment? It’s better to be safe than sorry, so Sjo ordered all his trusted allies to be there.
Archbishop Keppira d’Bear of Pharasma and Archbanker Darb Tuttle of Abadar are present as well. They help prepare the party for battle by handing out their most powerful protections and buffs, complementing the spells that Elvira, Sjo, Tasathyl and the rangers provide. When the heroes are ready to go, they have never been more enhanced in power by magic than right now. Elvira gathers Sjo, Balian and Puk around her and whispers the incantation to take her party directly to the bowels of Jernashall, aiming for the platform on which Daralathyxl was sleeping. Three more allies, the green dragon Tasathyl, the dwarf Sigurd Dragondoom and the celestial hound archon Esphydriel will wait in Korvosa for the heroes to return and finalize stage one of the plan, before joining them for stage two.
“Floop”, the party arrives on the edge of Daralathyxl’s impressive podium. It looks like the dragon is already awake and waiting for them, towering above his treasure, grunting and ready to strike. Realizing that they have to trick the dragon into using his breath weapon, the companions stay close, forming one nice target for the dragon’s most powerful attack. “Greetings, king under the mountain,” Elvira taunts, “don’t mind us. We’re just here to grab some treasure and then we’ll be off.” In her hands she cradles a small cage, covered with a blanket. This is the special container she ordered for the Crown of Fangs. At the same time Puk mounts the fallen stone head of a statue to his left. An intricate, regal-looking axe has been imbedded behind its right ear. This must be the Axe of Dwarvish Lords, arguably the most powerful item in Daralathyxl’s collection. The halfling grabs the weapon by the shaft and tries to pull it free, but it is stuck too firmly for his little hands. Balian and Sjo gather some treasure themselves, though nothing as valuable as Puk.
Elvira stares the dragon in the eye. “Please spare your fiery breath until we’re gone”, she pleads. The dragon does not quite react as she expected, not displaying the emotion that an enraged wyrm would. Then, instead of attacking, the monstrosity simply blinks out of existence, as if it was never there. Only now does Elvira realize that it wasn’t, “it is just an illusion”, she cries. The next moment the lava behind the heroes explodes as a colossal red serpent breaks through its surface. Lava rains down on the heroes and burns away part of their protections from fire. Daralathyxl wastes no time, exhales and spews forth a deluge of flames, giving Elvira just what she wanted.
“Let’s get out of here”, she says, pulling Puk of the stone head, where he is still vainly trying to pull the axe out. The blanket over Elvira’s cage has been turned to ashes, With the metal bars still sizzling from the heat of the firestorm, the wizard is glad her protection against fire is still up. “Floof!” A teleport returns the heroes to Sjo’s throne room. Little Brienna is waiting in the crimson chair, clinging her hands around a hammer that has been magically enhanced. Elvira pulls open the cage, spilling its contents on the floor. The crown itself has melted away, leaving only Kazavon’s fangs. Brienna singles out the biggest tooth and lifts her hands high above her head. Then she smashes her hammer down as hard as she can. THUNK!
The tooth seems unharmed at first, then a hairline fracture appears, multiplying with incredible speed until the whole ivory surface of the fang is completely cracked. First the air seems to be pulled into the tooth, then it detonates with a force that hurls Balian into the wall. The ivory turns to powder and at the same time all the other teeth pulverize as well. Esphydriel’s angelic eyes immediately pick up that the evil emanating from Kazavon’s fangs is completely gone. The artefact has been destroyed! Hurrah!!
Tuttle and d’Bear renew the protections from fire before the heroes teleport back to the dragon’s lair, in three groups. Tasathyl takes the two people who want to get up close and personal, Puk and Balian. Elvira brings Sigurd and Sjo along, picking a rocky outcrop in the sea of magma as her destination, making sure to keep a safe distance from the serpent’s platform. Esphydriel can take care of himself, appearing on the other end of the dais. Daralathyxl is still swimming in the lava, so the heroes have to wait until he shows himself again. The small rock where Elvira, Sigurd and Sjo landed is not as safe as they had hoped. A tidal wave of lava splashes over it, followed by an enormous red tail that sweeps through the air, swatting at them like flies. Elvira casts a greater dispel magic at the appendage, hoping to strip away any buffs the dragon has, but her attempt is not strong enough.
On the stone podium, Tasathyl tries to lure Daralathyxl out of the lava, by grabbing the axe of Dwarvish Lords herself, but she inadvertently sets off a symbol of pain that – fortunately –affects only Balian. The ranger’s muscles cramp up, filling him with wracking pains, making it harder for him to control his motor skills. Sjo attempts his own greater dispel magic, but fails as well. Meanwhile Puk starts looting at random, Elvira flies over and focuses to locate more valuable prize items, while mocking the ancient wyrm for leaving his treasure unguarded.
Suddenly, a red snout breaks from the lava, smoke spouting from its nostrils and filling the stage. The dragon’s nose is enough for Sigurd to fire his first double manyshot arrows at the creature. All the years of training and savouring his vengeance pay off as the arrows tear into the monster’s skull, forcing him to dive below again.
The heroes continue heaving coins into their bags, ridiculing the red King for letting them get away with it. Then the stone beneath their feet heats up and starts glowing slightly, as if ready to melt. The heroes hover high enough to avoid being burned, while Daralathyxl resurfaces again to cast mass hold person on them, but freedom of movement protects them. Instead, the colossus takes another arrow to the head. Elvira wonders how she can lure the enemy out of the molten rock and decides to summon a 20’-high wall of force to shield the podium from the lava. Now, Daralathyxl will be blocked from attacking them from the relative safety of the magma. Only Esphydriel is caught on the far side of the wall, so Daralathyxl can focus all his physical attacks on the hound archon. Rising from the pool the dragon slashes at the angelic dog with his claws and wings. Finally, he bites the poor canine in two, sending it back to heaven.
Just as Elvira’s allies start doubting the wisdom of her wall of force spell, her tactics pay off. Daralathyxl leaves the lava and teleports right on top of his treasure pile, crushing Elvira, Puk, Balian and Sjo who are all stealing his wealth. Still, with freedom of movement still active, the heroes pull free easily. Finally, Puk and Balian get the opportunity to strike at their foe, scoring a handful of hits. Sigurd also gets his first chance to unload a full volley on the red-scaled fiend, while Elvira teleports to safety on the other side of the wall.
But Daralathyxl has more tricks up his sleeve. He beats his wings hard, knocking back his assailants and staggering them. Now he unleashes all of his ire on Sigurd, badly wounding the dwarf. Elvira attempts yet another greater dispel magic. This time her efforts pay off and she takes down three of the dragon’s magical defences. Tasathyl’s acid breath can now burn into the red scales unhindered. With another wing buffet the red King drives back his opponents. He spits out another fire breath on Puk, Sigurd and Sjo, but the first two can evade the flames entirely. Meanwhile, the green dragon Tasathyl decides the best way to draw her nemesis’s attention is to attack him in person. She swoops down, teeth out to bite him. She goes for his throat, tearing out a big chunk of meat from his neck.
Finding himself surrounded by his enemies, Darlathyxl withdraws by hurling himself over the wall of force, back into the lava, taking a surprised Tasathyl with him. The green dragon immediately climbs out of the magma, shaking off a shower of glowing droplets, happy that magic still wards her from the worst burns. Elvira is just in time to cast blink, because from below the surface claws, teeth and a tail shoot out to kill her. Fortunately, only half the attacks hit her, the others being misguided by the flickering magic. She retreats to Sjo’s side, who heals her. Balian starts flying over the molten stone, trying to get the dragon to attack him, so he can hit it back. Puk is still filling his pockets in the hopes of drawing out Daralathyxl. Sigurd does the same by picking up the Axe of Dwarvish Lords.
Once more Daralathyxl rises from the pool, attempting to dominatie Balian, but the ranger resists. The ancient dragon takes more hits from exposing himself and Tasathyl realizes that by now, their opponent is so badly hurt that he won’t stick around any longer, even if it means giving up his hoard. She informs the party of this, telling them they only have a few more seconds before the red King slips through their fingers. Elvira shouts at Puk: use your last wish to stop him! The halfling lifts his luckblade and points at the magma. Then he raises his hands, making the lava around the submerged colossus part. The mass of molten rock rises, pulling to the left and right in two burning waves, revealing the red wyrm. Balian swoops in and hits the cowering beast twice. Sjo calls forth a pillar of energy from the sky, replacing its fire damage with electricity. The crackling bolt hits the dragon, making him scream in terror. Then the fire in his eyes fades, as the lava flows back over him, giving the red wyrm a fitting grave.
Afterwards there is much rejoicing … and much loot to be had, because even though Borogrim the Hale agreed with the heroes that they would take no treasure, he generously gifts them a healthy portion of the money and gems, as well as their pick of a magical item. Tasathyl also gets her three prizes, a book dating back to a forgotten cyclops civilisation, an acorn that can become a treant and a cloak made from a pit fiend’s hide by the demon lord Graz’zt.
And so, the heroes of Korvosa return victorious, having become the stuff of legends. They have triumphed over an evil usurper, saved many lives in the process, they have taken charge of the city to steer it towards stability and prosperity, they have prevented the rising of the hateful Runelord of Lust and finally, they have done what no one thought possible: they have destroyed on of Kazavon’s evil artefacts, the Fangs of Midnight. They are heroes indeed and with so much of their lives still in front of them, who knows what other feats of glory they will achieve in the future? But that is a story for another time, because this tale - fine as it has been - is over. Thank you all for listening. Goodbye!
I just finished reading through this. It was fantastic. You did an exceptional job at introducing characters early and laying the groundwork for the campaign as a whole.
I recently started my own campaign, following up 7 years after the conclusion of my group's Rise of the Runelords campaign. Unfortunately, I only found your campaign journal after the CotCT campaign began, or I likely would have adapted some of your early content as well.
I'm hoping you see this, since I'd love to pick your brain on some topics. I really enjoyed the way that you kind of condensed everything to fit into five "chapters" worth of the AP and added on your own sixth. One thing I was curious about throughout was how much you were adjusting the fights for some of those later levels, especially everything post skipping Scarwall. I'm running my campaign in 2e now, so I anticipate I'll have to make adjustments (the math would make such high level encounters vs a lower level party into massacres.), but I actually liked your level scaling more than the way the base campaign runs it.
I'm also curious about what you felt you would do differently if you were replaying it all. Are there any portions you would remove or adapt differently?